1
as in misleading
tending or having power to deceive
in his deceptive answer about the vehicle's history, the salesman said that the used car had never been hit by another car
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fraudulent
given to or marked by cheating and deception
a mail-order firm indicted for deceptive business practices
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of deceptive
In 2024, CarShield paid $10 million to settle allegations by the Federal Trade Commission that its ads were deceptive and that customers discovered many repairs were not covered.
—
Brian Sloan, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2025
Enter California’s hyper-partisan Attorney General Rob Bonta, who has just issued a deceptive ballot label for Proposition 50, the measure seeking to abolish the congressional district maps prepared by the Independent Redistricting Commission.
—Jon Coupal, Oc Register, 31 Aug. 2025
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes filed a lawsuit against Reynolds Consumer Products, owner of Hefty, claiming deceptive advertising regarding the recyclability of its plastic bags.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Nor is there anything untoward and deceptive about it.
—Adam Gelb, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deceptive
Brian Sloan, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2025
Enter California’s hyper-partisan Attorney General Rob Bonta, who has just issued a deceptive ballot label for Proposition 50, the measure seeking to abolish the congressional district maps prepared by the Independent Redistricting Commission.
—Jon Coupal, Oc Register, 31 Aug. 2025
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes filed a lawsuit against Reynolds Consumer Products, owner of Hefty, claiming deceptive advertising regarding the recyclability of its plastic bags.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Nor is there anything untoward and deceptive about it.
—Adam Gelb, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deceptive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deceptive
Adjective
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Trump has initiated a flurry of defamation lawsuits against media companies, accusing them of false or misleading coverage.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
16 Sep. 2025
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In a recent interview with the Financial Times, Hinton challenged the optimistic visions promoted by Silicon Valley leaders, suggesting that much of the upbeat narrative about AI’s societal benefits is, at best, misleading.—
Tim Bajarin,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Businesses/nominees cannot obtain votes by any fraudulent or inappropriate means.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
12 Sep. 2025
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After a long process of validating legitimate claims and tossing out the ones that were fraudulent or duplicative, Angeion, the company in charge of distributing the payments, has finished its calculations determining how much each individual will get as payments go out starting this month.—
Alix Martichoux,
The Hill,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The false assurance was more than a slip.—
Eric Tucker,
Twin Cities,
13 Sep. 2025
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Robinson, the founder of the now-defunct anti-immigration English Defence League (EDL), was released from prison earlier this year, having been jailed for being in contempt of court by repeating false accusations about a Syrian refugee.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Another reason is that most EVs don’t use wires in their steering column so they can’t be hotwired and some have cameras and motion detection that deter shady people that get too close to the vehicle.—
Keenan Thompson,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
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Leaving it longer, especially in shady areas, helps the grass develop a stronger root system.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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These are cheap, dishonest shots against a great intellect, acknowledged by friends and opponents alike.—
James Gaylord,
Oc Register,
15 Sep. 2025
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Industry groups insist that they are committed to weeding out dishonest companies that make false claims or sell dangerous products.—
Suzy Khimm,
NBC news,
26 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Their boss, the only one not carrying a blaster, pointed a long crooked finger at Rusty and all the Blasters were raised at Rusty in unison.—
Manuel Muñoz,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
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For a Chicago Cubs lineup that has struggled lately to consistently score runs, let alone put up a crooked number, Friday’s opener against the Colorado Rockies provided the ideal bounce-back environment coming off the sweep in San Francisco.—
Meghan Montemurro,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deceptive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deceptive. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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